AVIVA IS to press ahead with up to 1,200 job cuts in Ireland over the next two years, though no employees will lose their jobs before March, the company said yesterday.

In a number of meetings with departmental heads yesterday in Dublin and Galway, Aviva management gave details of the forthcoming job cuts in Aviva’s general insurance and life and pensions divisions.

Workers in the IT, claims and operations divisions in Dublin will take the brunt of the job cuts, as well as those working in branches around the country.

The company said that no final decision on the closure of its entire network of 26 branches by next summer had been taken, and that Aviva will look at each branch on an individual basis.

Employees in Galway are expected to be shielded in part from the cuts, with the possibility that some jobs from Dublin may transfer to the Galway office.

The company also said it intends to retain its presence in Cork, and has recently signed a new five-year lease on its office at Cork Airport Business Park.

Aviva is to cut 950 jobs over the next two years, and possibly outsource another 300 jobs.

In addition to the 180 jobs going in Aviva Europe, the 770 job cuts earmarked for Aviva Ireland will be in two of Aviva’s main business divisions – general insurance and life and pensions, which have been performing poorly.

Aviva’s health insurance division, which employs people in Dublin, Cork and Galway, will be unaffected, with Aviva hoping to increase its market share in the Irish health insurance market. Aviva employs about 180 people in Cork and Galway respectively.

The company is “continuing to investigate” the feasibility of establishing additional centres of excellence in Ireland to serve customers in the UK, it said.

The company, which is considering outsourcing its underperforming life and pensions business, said a decision on this will be made towards the end of the first half of 2012.

“We have committed to any potential outsourcing being in the Republic of Ireland,” a spokesman for the company said yesterday.

The trade union, Unite, welcomed the agreement that no notice of redundancy will be served on staff until the final outline of the proposed restructuring is clear. “This will give some clarity for staff who had feared the loss of their job before Christmas,” Unite’s regional officer Brian Gallagher said yesterday.

However, staff will continue their industrial action, which includes not co-operating with actions that facilitate the transfer of work outside the country, Mr Gallagher said.

Aviva Ireland made profits of €122 million in 2010.

The Irish operation recorded profits of €32 million in the first six months of 2011 down from €86 million in the first half of 2010.

Last week Aviva announced that the chief executive of its Irish operations Dermot Brown is to be replaced by Seán Egan at the end of the year.

Mr Browne has been chief executive since February this year. Mr Egan will be the fourth executive in the role in just over two years.